“Artists are just people with marketable mental illnesses.” – Mike Eserkaln
It can be daunting complete something large. (long form improv, a novel, heck even a short improv) Like the saying goes: How do you eat an elephant? One small bite at a time. With larger projects consider each small moment a small story in and of itself. The basic plot of any story I can … Read more
There’s an improv game where you make goofy faces at someone when they’re not looking. They’re doing the same thing to you. This game has roots in comedia dll’arte. The way I originally learned it was with three performer sitting in a row. The outside players would attempt to make faces, the middle player had … Read more
Chad has been performing and learning improv for a little over a year now. He is an “older” improvisor in that most improvisors start in their 20’s or earlier, and he’s in his 40’s. It’s never too late to start learning improv, but it’s more difficult the older you are. You’ve learned to say “no” … Read more
The definition of empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of others. We do this naturally day to day, but often it’s difficult to act natural while performing on stage. So, it’s good to practice. Often when there’s a problem with an improv scene it’s that the performers aren’t connecting with each … Read more
Years ago I attended an improv festival in Milwaukee. Backstage there was a sign, “Check your ego at the door.” It seemed like pretty good advice at the time. Improv is shared creation and making the other performer look good. Having a group of performers knocking heads over who’s the best doesn’t get anyone anywhere. … Read more
Here’s a fun little exercise for people who are resistant to “performing”. (Credit goes to Carrie Masse for noticing this.) Have people pair up. Have one explain what a xylophone is to the other. Then have the second one explain what a trombone is. Most people will mime out the action of playing the instrument. … Read more
I’ve been performing live on stage for 25 + years. Literally thousands of shows for thousands upon thousands of people. But, there are only a few videos of me performing. And those are rarely, if ever, watched. When I have watched them I’m always disappointed. There’s something basically wrong about capturing a temporary moment this … Read more
I was teaching improv to college age performers with some theatre and improv training. At some point they were stuck about what to do or say next. The performer in question said that the advice they’d previously received was to “Say something truthful.” Sounded like good advice to me. But then they just stood there. … Read more
As a performer, or artist of any kind you’ve no doubt be asked to work for free, or for a really low price, or just for “exposure.” What you’re doing, if you’re doing it well, looks like a lot of fun. And, let’s face it, it is fun! But, it’s also a lot of work. … Read more
A friend of mine said he couldn’t dance. Nonsense. Everyone can dance. Qualifying it he said “I’m a bad dancer.” The optimist in me gets annoyed when someone says they’re “bad” at something. Why not say, “I’m not very good at that thing.”? Or better, “I’m not good at that, yet.” If there’s a scale … Read more